davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
Blind Toms Transfer.

A very exciting, yet pathetic, scene was wit
messed in the United States Court room in
Alexandria on Tuesday, when Blind Tom, the
negro pianist, was formally turned over to Mr..
A. j. Lerche, the counsel for his new guardian,
Mrs. Elsie kethune, of New York Mr.. James
Bethune appeared in court, bringing Tom with
him, and delivered his charge to United States
Marshal Scott, saying as he did so:
Tom, now deliver you to the court and to
that thief " indicating Dir. Lerche, who also
represented Toms mother
Il don't want any reflections" commenced
Mr.. Lerche, when Mr. Bethune continued:
But Tom, if the people who you are going
with get tired of you and turn You off. come
back to your old home and you shall be provided
for. "
While these remarks were being made Tom
was protesting loudly against being handed over
against his will, declaring with noisy vehe
mence, that if he were placed in his mothers
charge he would never play again for anyone.
After the sghtless musician was formally trans
ferred, and the papers in the case signed, Tom
refused to be governed by any but his old
guardian. He would not go out of the court
room, and when at last he was gotten out he
declined to enter the carriage, which wait
ing for him outside. Then Mr.. Bethune. with
the tears yelling from his dark eyes, and roll
ing down his face. talked kindly to the semi
idiotic pianist, and the stuhbon will was bent,
for Tom took his seat III the vehicle, amid a
shower of promises that he should return if he
didn't liz it. He was driven to the depot, and
left on the 3:20 train for New York.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
PERSONAL.


POSTMASTER GENERAL Villas expects co re-
nam IN Wisconsin lor month or SIX weeks.
Dr,.ANooy N1coII.the NewYorlz District Attor-
nv who tried Jacob Sharp plays lawn tennis
ali day long at Bar uarbor
MrrIIox1Rr PAYNE of the Standard OH Com
nonI 1yhosa residence is in New York goes
dou;n 70 Conav island nightly 10 sleen o.
Mrs. MARY "A MOORE, % years OF age, q wild
ow, OF Woodland Cal, is about TO wed James
Hack, the 3tyear-oid superintendent Oh her eS-
sstof, ia nlared ut SioS ,CO .
IIIE san FRANCISCO Efdmtner undertakes TO
show that Miss Eta H. whom IL styles the
belle OF Cal1ornla, Is more oeautltul than Mrs.
LanStry. IL compares tae Items OF makeup IN
qetali, ana rom Shoulder I'd ankle awards the
LAZY second place every time'
cr~, Mr. non, tho ,>ri-ipator Of tho ssATaina
law " early In September win 90 To New Yorl,
and make number of speeches in favor of pro-
hibltJon; Although Gen. DOW IS "a years old,
and his halr Is as white as snow, he is in Wig
orous health, ana is more active IMAM most men
OF %.
IT p O'CoNNoR has brovn-prav eves that lila
to twinkle with LARGE month that melts most
easily into a merry smile. and with ali his 70.
cilitlss of mlrth or wrath. of rhetoric
or f,ncv, or e,ra Tod contau,y. Ivine- ,Ioea
to the s,rface ready for use ON the fash of the
instant
Mps IAyerpv is fond of s,,rf bathinf, and ;s
a Ar srim,ner lat Friday sha anneS rsd ~,
the heach at long Branch clad i'm HIM fittinr-
isrsov suit Of deem black tostefulv tI.inmn3
nj, n goId hrsid Ste d;vei throngb The hiIioT,
with trace and yisor. and swan ont ms far as
Inc and Of tn. ner 49, 49,
"
THE best American in England rs Lord Ronald
Cover. He is tremend usly fond OF Americans,
and as he htls Travelled all over the world, he has
narrowness and inyular,ty. he has given The
American Exhibition o great lift socially, and
the Cover family have backed him up
~, 60. -, =.
pEohIE MACboNA-p, lhe famous Dli1lSn nov,
enst' poeI anu Ir'NacheT Is d man w years OF
1ee' thouSn nc doeS nor loo,s NOR tnah AZ lie
nerves nlh nun, luSoile ironi tnrty volumes
ol noNels anu nlne VoIulhes y. poeeuy: lie re-
csiNes an annual pension OF eooo from the
Queens cvll list, us compliment to his literary
aI,l AS preaeher ne mas . nlgn reputation
HIS delivery is most impressive, ana his dis
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
How Wilkins Was Caughe.

WdshingtoH Letter to Baltimore American.
The theory that a red-headed girl attracts
VIII tie horse has lately received q great deal of
att ntion from those who have considerable
am lunt of spare time upon their hands. In
fro 1t of the principal hotels there can be found
any afternoon party of department officials,
att 'rneys politicians and few stray members
of Congress, who watch the approach of every
woman and fuItively steel a glance at her hair.
Ii it happen to be of a shade approaching red,
every pair of eyes in the party will be turned
towardA the horses passing on the streets The
sight Of a white horse will caq forth the excla-
nation, There. 1t is" and the watchers will
wait for the next woman with the sunlight hair.
These vgils have been keptup for several weeks
now, and 1t is not recorded that n woman
with red hair has ever passed without the &C
companying white horse. Among those who
have pursued the Investigations With great
deal Of interest is Congressman Wilkins of
Ohio. This gentleman offered to bet a box of
choice cigars that the theory would not hold
good in the event of collection of rcd tresses.
That is, he would buy the smoking material If
half dozen of red heads should be seen and as
many white horses at the same time. The rest
of the party, who were firm believers in the at
fractions OF red and white hair, accepted the
wager Shortly afterwards Mr.. Wilkins sug
gested a walk. The party started from the
Ebbitt House, and proceeded TO the corner of
Thirteenth and f streets. where there is store
for the sale of human hair In the window of
this establishment were about dozen lay
heads Seven of these were adorned with wigs
of different shades of rednesS. There was not
a horse in sight as the party approached and
Mr.. Wilkins said: There, boys. Reina Vic
torias are good enough for me-" Just at that
moment the tramp of horses was heard coming
around the corner They all looked up and saw
a white hearse returning from 4 funeral, fol-
lowed by eight carriages, every one of which
was drawn by pair of white horses. Reina
Victorias were good enough for the rest of the
party They have been smoking that brand for
q week. and now Wilkins is as firm a believer in
the red-headed-girl white-horse theory as any of
the others.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
The Proposed Board of Pardons

The Governor, in hismeSsage to the Legis-
lature at the beginning of the present SEES
sion, suggested tho advisability of creating
board of pardons. The suggestion was
based upon the fact that six hundred appli-
cations for pardon were waiting for his
action. He stated that it was impossible for
him to give these applications the attention
which they deserved, and at the same time
attend to his other duties.
Several bills were introduced into the
House based upon the Governors sugges-
was entirely satisfactory to the
Penitentiary Committee, to which
they were referred. A substitute
for them was offered by a member of the
committee, and it was decided to report it
favorably. The substitute provides for a
board consisting of three members and "a
clerk The compensation is fixed at 81
day each, while serving the State, and mile
age. The Governor is to appoint the board,
and North, South and Middle Georgia are
each to have representative upon it. The
board is to meet within thirty days after
appointment, and to give not more than
sixty days to its duties in the first year, and
not more than thirty days in succeeding
years.
1t is probable that the Legislature will
pass this bill just as it is, or with slight
notifications. 1t is apparent that board
of pardons is needed. 1t is impossible for
the Governor to make careful examina-
ton of all the applications for pardon which
are presented to him, and il is very doubtful
if any board can conscientiously inquire into
the 600 pending applications within sixty
days. To do % it would be necessary to
pass upon ten each day. 1t is probable that
in some cases the papers filed with the
application are very voluminous, and in
others it will be necessary to hear
testimony before it will be possible to reach
a satisfactory decision. After the first year,
however, the board doubtless will be able to
discharge its duties within the time fixed
by the bill The Governor will still have a
great deal to do in connection with pardons
as he will have 20 review the work of the
board. He will, however, be relieved of an
immense amount of drudgery as well as of
much responsibility.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20

The New York World says that citizens
of Detroit, Mich, irrespective of party,
have been working for popular invitation
to President Cleveland TO visit that city.
Prominent among the movers in the scheme
was Ira Metcalf, leading Republican and
member OF the gilt-edgcd, kid-gloved Re
publican Club. At special meeting of the
club it was decided that, in the interests of
harmony, MetcaG must be quietod. He
was approached by a select committee and
appriscd of the fact that the invitation TO
the President was Democratic scheme.
Every inducement was held out to Metcalf
to cause him to withdraw from the move
ment, but he refused. II is now probable
that he will be expelled from the club In
this case, as in many others, Republican
partisanship has passed the bounds of
decency.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
The Father of Forty-One Children
Killed When 90 Years Old
From The Harrisburg Patriot.

al read IL few days ago" said a member of
the Reading bar on visit to Harrisburg yes
terlay Ian account of a man in Western
Pennsylvania who died the father of thirty
three oh lClren, at the age of 3d. When John
Heifner, of Reading, was accidentally killed by
the cars In that city in 1885, at the age Of CO. he
was the father of of forty-one children, and O
stepchild also called him father. heifner was
a dwaried hunchback. He was born in Berlin
in 1916, and came TO this country in lS43, set
Ting in Reading. Until his deGth he made
living by collecting and selling rags and paper
He was married first Ia 1910. In eight years
his wife bore him seventeen children. The irst
and second years of their marriage she gave
birth TO twins. For four successive years after
gave birth to one child, and died soon after
ward. of the seventeen children she left, con.
sequently, the oldest was only years Of age.
Heffner engaged young woman 10 look
after his large brood OF babies.
and, three months later. she
became the second Mrs. Heffner She presented
her husband with two children the first two
years Five years later she had added ten more
to the family, two at every birth. Then for
three years she added but one a year She died
before another year came round. OF the thirty
two children that John Heffncr had been pre-
scented with twelve had died. The twenty that
We're left, however, did not appear TO be any oh
stacle 10 young widow with Que child consent.
ing to become Che third wife Of the jolly little
humpback for he was Known a one of the
happlest and most genial men in Reading. al.
though it kept him toiling like q slave TO keep
his score of mouths in bread. The third Mrs.
Heifner bccalne the mother of nine children TO
her husband in ten years. and the contentment
and Happiness Of the couple were proverhial
One day il the fall OF i8A the f7ther of the
forty.one children was crossing the Reading
track and was run down by Doom olive and in
stantW killed, But for tbat sad ending Of his
life Is impossible to estimate what the size of
the little pedder's family would eventually have
been. His widow and Large number OF his
chtdren--I believe there are twenty eight OF the
forty.two still lving--live la Reading. They are
all thr.s-v and sasnoctahla mamie y
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
An Answer Required.

The Pacific Railroad Commission, which
for weeks past has been engaged in investi-
eating the affairs of the Central Pacific
Railroad, in which the government has a
large interest, has placed Senator Stanford,
of California, in a very unenviable position.
Ex-Gov. PattisOn, the chairman of the
commission, insisted upon knowing what
became Of some s., 000, 900 which the Central
Pacific had received, but which was not
accounted for on the books of the road.
Senator Stanford, who is President of the
road, refused to tell the commission what
had become of the money. He said that
none of it had been used to corrupt Con
gressmer, State legislators or Judges and
that it had not been deducted from the
amount of which the government received a
percentage. He contended therefore that it
was none of the commissions business
what became of it,
The commission, however, was not salts
fled with the answer. 1t remembered that
the company wanted to deduct the 50 ,000,-
900 from the net receipts, on which the gov
ernment's percentage was based, and was
only prevented from doing so by the refusal
of the government to permit it TO be done,
unless it were shown what had become of the
money. The secrecy which the company
observes with respect to this money iustifies
the suspicion that it was not properly used.
If it were disposed of in legitimate way,
what possible objection could there be to
making public all there is to know about it
Senator Stanford is a very rich man and
occupies a high position in Congress, but
neither his money nor his position ought to
be permitted to shield him from the conse-
quences of any wrongful acts of which he
may be guilty. The government has had q
great deal of difficulty to get even small
part of that which is due it from the Pacific
roads, although it is n notorious fact that
quite a number of those who are largely in
terested in their management have made
colossal fortunes out of them.
The government will spare no effort tc
compel Senator Stanford to answer the
questions of the commission. Tho matter is
now in the courts, where, doubtless, it viii
rest for awhile. 1t is probable that the
Senator's claim that the government has NJ
right to know what the Central Pacific die
with vast sum of money, and that tn,
company ought not to be compelled to max,
public its private affairs, will not be held
to be valid The governments interest in
the Pacific roads is an immense one, and for
the proper protection of that interest il
must know all about their affairs.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
Bic and Little Criminals.


The impression prevails in New York
that Jacob Sharp will secure a stay Of pro-
ceedings in his case. If he succeeds in get
ting new trial it is safe to predict that he
will never see the inside of the penitentiary.
The jury which convicted him was obtained
with the greatest difficulty, and his trial
cost the county of New York many thou
sands of dollars. The Judge who presided
at the trial is one of the ablest on the New
York bench, and he was exceedingly care
full not to make any mistakes. If flaws in
the proceedings are found which are held to
be sufficient to invalidate the verdict the
opinion will be entertained by many that
there is one sort of Justice in New York for
a rich man and another sort for poor man.
This opinion may not be correct. but there
will nevertheless be some reason for enter
tanning it.
The belief is quite generally entertained
nowadays that a man VINO steals hundreds
of thousands of dollars is much more likely
to escape punishment for his crime than one
who steals So. The confession of the de-
fauter Scott, published in our dispatches q
day or two ago, shows how prevalent this
belief is. Scott was the teller of the Man
haitian Bank in New York city. For ten
years he stole small sums from the bank
without being detected. A change in the
banks manage nent was about to occur,
and he was satisfied that his wrong doing
would be discovered He went to a lawyer
for advice, and was informed that the
wisest course for him to pursue
was to steal 100000, if he
could get that much, and go to Canada.
The lawyer informed him that the bank
would be glad to compromise with him for
half the amount, and that the other half
would be sufficient to support him in luxury
for the balance of his life.
He acted OH the advice to the extent of
stealing 100000 He reached Canada, and
finally went TO London, where he made u
confession to Consul General Waller He
was foolish enough, however, to leave
most of the money with the lawyer
for safe-keeping, and the lawyer
appropriated the most of it to his own use.
The bank did agree to compromise the mat
ter, however, but Scott was unable to return
any part of the money, because the lawyer
asserted that he had lost it all in specula-
tions. If Scott had been able to command
the money he would have escaped punish
ment, and had enough TO live life of leis-
ure.
Those of the Aldermen whom Sharp
bribed, who have been tried, are now in the
penitentary, but Sharp, who made 81 900
600 out of the street railway franchise
Il. 4 Al
is not in the penitentiary yet, and, if the
report respecting the granting of a stay in
his case is true, the chances are that he will
never be an inmate of that institution. The
power of gold is great. 1t seems to be great
enough to sometimes stay the hand of JUS
tice
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
THE MORNING NEWS: SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 1887.
The Washington Railroad Accident.

The Washington Railroad Accident.
The accident on the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad on Wednesday, at Washington,
caused great deal of indignation in that
city. 1t is alleged that the "Y" which
caused the accident is a death-trap. 1t has
caused several other accidents, and the at
tention of the railroad management has fire.
quently been called to its dangerous charac-
ter. For some reason no effort has been
made to remove it, or to SO change it as to
make it safe. II is alleged that the man
agement was averse to spending any money
for improving its facilities for handling its
traffic at Washington because it has been
expecting Congress for years to pass a law
compelling the railroads to remove their
depotS to the boundary of the city.
If this statement is correct it seems that
the Baltimore and Ohio Company has been
subjecting those who travel upon the
Washington branch of its road to a very
great danger, for no other reason than to
avoid the expenditure of a sum of money
sufficient to insure comparative safety to
its patrons. Wednesdays accident, how
ever. will cost the company more than it
would to remedy the dangerous "Y,"
and the prospect is that the company will
have to remove the "Y )" or at least to so
change it that it will no longer be death
trap. The Commissioners at Washington
are making the accident the occasion for
inquiring into the right of the company to
run its cars into the heart of the city, and it
is not improbable that they will make regu
LOT oh, o;+ 4la
from running its trains within the city
limits or compel it to remove the danger
Gus features of its tracks.
A great many railroad companies are
constantly improving their roads, and they
keep in view the necessity for adopting
every possible means to make travelling on
them safe. They seek only fair income
from their property, and use their surplus
in making improvements. There are other
companies, however, and the number is
large, which do not put dollar in improve
ments as long as they can possibly avoid
doing SO. The roads of these com
panies are, as rule, in the
hands of spectators, whose aim
is to make all the money they can. If
road has a good earning capacity, and is
capable of paying large dividends, the stock
is watered extensively, and then the money
that should be expended upon improvements
is used to pay dividends on the watered
stock. The market price of the stock de-
ponds, of course, upon the dividends
Railroad companies complain of hostile
legislation, but they must expect such legis-
lation as long as the rights which the public
is entitled to are disregarded. Unfortunate
ly the roads which are honestly managed
have to suffer for the wrong-doing of those
which are not honestly managed.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
A Tragedian's Way.
From the Elmira Tfdinqs.

From. the Elnird TIdings.
A man walked into the principal hotel of a
Western city the other day with a valiSe and a
big appetite, and going into the dinng-room
tried for a few minutes TO work up breakfast.
He then broke out with:
what, no. landlord! Is there blacksmith
within the precincts of this mighty city?'
Landlord-Why, yes, of course.
Tragedian-Then send one hither.
Landlord-Wbat In thunder do you want with
a blacksmith in my dining room;
Tragedlan-I would have him test his steel
and brawny arm by severing in twain this steak
from the shoulder of the DECEASED bovine OF
many years, and then, for my physical recu-
peration. would have him saw file and chisel
off few morsels from its hardened bulk, for |
would dine the while l pray thee haste and
fetch him quickly. Stay thee Your biscuits
you can take to stone quarry for blast; these
grits / can, with dexterous art and glass of
water, manage to swallow whole. Go bring the
blacksmith. Away
The landlord tainted, and awoke almost a
raving maniac.
The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-08-20
The Unexpected.
Ero,r, the Boston Courier

From the Boston Courier.
loved her for years, and yet, half afraid,
To tell her the story never esSayed
l feared that my tale might her feelings offend,
And then | would lose her as even friend.
Yet once, by the side of a calm, peaceful lake,
l mustered up courage her fair hand to take;
And then. while the midsummer sun hid its gold
In faltering accents the story was told.
I've nothing to give you; no riches have l.
Methought that heard the faint note of sigh;
II offer you only a fair stainless name
That never has known eu the shadow of shame
II know that the gossiping world says l WOO
Your fortune, with never a feeling for you;
But. were you a beggar, or even slave,
Your love on my knees would ardently crave >
Her curled lashes lifted; her eyes shining bright
Like twin stars, flashed forth on the darkenng
night;
Il know all your worth lower dropped the fair
head,
You're just man after my own heart" she
said